Fragments, shards and peices
by StripeyKLW
Summary: Tory is your averadge Highschooler, with his new friends Mandy and Colin. They seem just dandy together, but with odd projects and occurances pushing the two boys together, what will become of them? Not to mention, the secrets and troubles of life. M.


Hello heres my first fanfiction! I intend to work hard on this, and make many chapters, and such. I would really apriciate it if you reviewed. So, heres a heads up. This is slash, yaoi, shonen-ai, whatever. Boyxboy. Understand? Dont flame it because of the couple, and if you do end up flameing me, don't just do it for fun. Thankyou to my lovely beta, and of course, I don't own Offbeat or its characters. Damn, I wish. So, enjoy!

-x-

Colin struggled up the front steps, his arm around Tory, whose expression seemed concerned. He gave a scratchy cough, pulling his arm back. Tory held him for a moment longer, before reluctantly releasing his neighbour.

"Thanks," Colin said, smiling as best he could.

Tory flushed lightly, looking away before turning back and muttering, "It's nothing."

Colin thrusted the door open into his house. He was initially surprised as the door was unlocked, but then saw Doctor Garrets standing there, his arms crossed. Colin looked back at Tory. "Uh, bye," he said, waving Tory off. Garrets shut the door lightly, his eyes never straying off of Colin's body. Up and down they went, sending what could be classified as a shiver up Colin's spine.

"They're getting worse?" the Doctor asked, brushing a piece of greying brown hair from his face. He always had a way of knowing. But this time, it was obvious. Not only, Colin assumed, had Garrets been watching from the window as he'd collapsed near the steps, but he'd probably heard the conversation between the two boys as they'd marched up to the door. Colin cringed at the thought - what the Doctor might do to him if he had infact heard everything they'd said. It wasn't right for Colin to reveal even such a little peice of information to anyone. As he recalled, their conversation had been something along the lines of: "Are you... Why do you keep blacking out? Are you sick?" "I've told you, it's a condition." "Right... But... Why?" "Don't ask questions you know you won't get an answer to, Tory." Just that would earn Colin some serious punishment.

Colin gave the doctor a look of combined detest and loathing, then scoffed, "no. I'm fine," before pulling his collar up higher and marching into the kitchen. He bent down to the lower cupboards, pulling out a bag of dry catfood. He poured it into the seven dishes laying on the floor, then pushed it back into its place. Closing the cupboard, Colin glanced at Garrets again. He was just standing there against the door frame, observing the boy. 'Creepy bastard,' thought Colin. He pushed passed Dr. Garrets, back into the hallway before making a dash upstairs and locking himself in his room.

-x-

Tory looked back after the door had shut. He turned, taking a step back onto the first stair. It was all so confusing, even for a genius such as himself. What was this 'condition'? And why were Colin and Dr. Garrets so secretive about themselves? And, the 'Gaia Project'... Tory's mind was cluttered with thoughts as he hopped down again and marched across the street.

"Hey, Tory," Paul greeted him on his way out of the small apartment building. "Have a fun day?" He teased him, knowing Tory had been out with Colin again. "What exactly do you do all day with him?"

Tory pouted, flicking red locks from his eyes. "Like it's any of your business. And fine, my day was just fine... yours?"

Paul snickered, waving his hand behind him at Tory as he walked away. "Fantastic, thanks. Bye, Tor."

Tory turned the corner, passing a door and a staircase until reaching his own. He entered his house, suddenly hit with the sweet smell of a pie baking and lasagna, presumably for supper. Mary trotted around the corner, her apron splattered with bits of food. "Tory! You're just in time!" she said happily as he entered the kitchen with her. "I hope you like it, sit down, sit down. It's nearly ready. Can you put some plates on the table for us?"

"Sure mom," Tory said, smiling at her. The conversation at the table that evening consisted of, of course, Tory's day, Mary's work, her pay, and how Tory needed a new scarf and hat for the winter. Then Tory cleared the table and placed the dishes in the dishwasher before leaving for his room. 'He sure spends a lot of his time in there now,' Mary thought to herself as she grabbed a dish towl.

Tory flicked on the lights and immediately went to the closet. He bent down and reached to the back, pulling out a box of black journals. He had dedicated one especially for the Gaia Project. Tory grabbed that notebook, gazing at it before going to his computor desk. He flipped through the pages until falling upon the section containing the information from the license plate. He reviewed it, then put it back, shoving the box back into the closet with his foot. He pulled off his clothes, turned off the lights and curled up underneath his bedsheets. 'I guess,' he thought, 'I'll go to bed early today, and see mom off to work tomorrow.'

-x-

Tory's hair ruffled against the wind as he stared up at his huge school. The ginger had always had messy hair, even though he combed it every morning. However, he didn't want it to become jostled to one side in the breeze. Tory held it down with his hands, hauling himself up the steps.

"Tooorrryyyyyyy!" Mandy rushed up behind him, pressing her hands against his back and squeezing his shoulders. "Whatcha doin'?" She asked curiously, eyeing his hair crisis.

"Noothinnggg," Tory replied in the same tone she'd given him, making her giggle. They smiled lightly to eachother, before Tory furrowed his eyebrows. "Hey, have you seen Colin?" he questioned her.

"I think he got dropped off earlier." Mandy told him. She smirked, her eyebrows raised. "I hear you two were together again this weekend. How'd it go?"

"Wha-" Tory blushed a deep red, "Good, I guess. How was it supposed to go? Can't two friends just go to the arcade together? What, does that make them gay? Why is everyone accusing us!"

Mandy only laughed, latching onto Colin as he came up behind them, and they all walked into the school. Each of them dropped off their backback at their lockers, and grabbed the textbooks for today.

"Let's go sit somewhere!" Mandy said happily, attempting to balance a book atop her blonde hair.

"Yeah.." Colin agreed, earning a look from Tory. 'Is he okay?' Tory had wondered about him all morning, but he knew if he asked how Colin was, Mandy would need to know why. 'Maybe I'll get a chance later.'

"Should we go to the libary?" Colin asked, Mandy and Tory saying "Okay" in unison. They walked, all chatting about how they were and the latest anything, before Mandy spoke up again.

"Hey! Did you know that Mrs. Pene is making us do that project - oh, what's it called - where you're assigned partners and you take care of a balloon? And it's your baby! But theres a twist! She wants it to be same sex partners, so we also learn not to discriminate and how having two boys and two girls as parents are just as good as a male and female!"

"WHAT!?"


End file.
